Page 60 of Don't Cross Mo Ellery

Hannah:You know

Hannah:You had that stalker

Me:?

Hannah:Government guy? Who was creeping on your apartment?

Me:Him! Right! Wow that was so 3 days ago

Me:Anyway that turned out to be Chris

Me:Speaking of Chris-I had sex with somebody not Chris

Hannah:Oh wow

Me:Also, can I borrow Eva’s green screen and some other equipment? I’ll be fast, she won’t even notice

Hannah:I guess so

Hannah:Also, can we talk soon

Me:How about I call you after my shift? I’m not supposed to be on the phone right now

Hannah:K

I slide my phone back into my pocket and walk a few kids across the street, my mind bouncing back and forth. I’m thinking about good things for once—replaying sexy times with Tasha, imagining doing it again, and fantasizing about how I’m going to make a totally fantastic adoption video that will solve my poodle problem for good—when I notice Marlowe walking back toward me, slowly this time.

I step into the crosswalk to escort her when I see the look on her face. She’s pale, her eyes wide and watery. I stop, right in the middle of the street, suddenly terrified of what she’s going to tell me.

“It’s not the construction site,” Marlowe says, her voice so quiet I can barely hear her. “It’s Claudia. Claudia’s dead.”

Chapter 19

Well, she got what she said she wanted.

She didn’t have to downsize and give up her perfect little bungalow.

Claudia died in her house.

I want to throw up. I can’t believe I’ve been so self-involved, so worried about my own ass that I didn’t see the truth right in front of my face.

When the unknown mastermind/Funeral Deep Throat said “take care of her,”herdidn’t meanme.

“Her”meantClaudia.

Oh god.

And Claudia’s text:It’s murder

That wasn’t a passive-aggressive snark attack at me for taking so long to figure it out. She was telling me thatshewas going to be murdered.

Hot tears spring to my eyes. None of this makes sense. Why wasn’t she morespecificwith her cry for help? If only she’d texted“it’s murdernow,forme”I would have run straight to her house. Maybe I could have saved her.

Holy shit. I could have saved her.

I’ve gone from a zero-murder life to having two back-to-back murders weighing on my conscience. First Cran, and now—

“Claudia? When? How?” I can barely get the words out.